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Aunt and Uncle have no will

I have just written a post about whether I should make a will or not but I also want to ask advice about my aunt and uncle.

I am very close to my aunt and uncle and I love them a lot. I also know they have no will. My aunt and uncle have no children and live in Scotland.

If something was to happen to my aunt and uncle in the next 5 - 10 years then their brothers and sisters would take care of everything but since they are both the youngest of their family members the likelihood is it will be left to me and my cousins to sort things out.

The reality is that I am the closest and the most organised of my cousins (my aunt is my mums sister) and my uncles rarely sees his blood nieces and nephews.

Would them not having a will make it a nightmare to organise things either if they need to go into a home, need help or care or if they die?

Please note this is not about money and although I might be the closest to them and the most organised I see no reason why I should or would get any more than my cousins.

The reality is if something happened either with my aunt and uncle needing help or if they died and thier brothers and sisters wernt around or were unable to help I would be the one sorting things out so I want to know if I should say something to them more about leaving something written down about giving me access to sort things out NOT about leaving me anything more than my cousins would get...

Would this be more about power of attorney than a will?

Ta!

Em
LBM: July 09
Mum [STRIKE]£400[/STRIKE], Overdraft [STRIKE]£700[/STRIKE], RBS CC [STRIKE]£3980[/STRIKE], A&L loan [STRIKE]£11,263[/STRIKE], Santander CC [STRIKE]£1955[/STRIKE]
Total debt [STRIKE]-£16343[/STRIKE] £0:j:j:j:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
Debt free by December 2011

Comments

  • Mojisola
    Mojisola Posts: 35,571 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Scottish inheritance law varies in some important ways from English and Welsh law. Always check that any advice relates to the Scottish law.

    Without a will - https://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/12/05115128/51285
  • empage
    empage Posts: 60 Forumite
    Debt-free and Proud!
    Mojisola wrote: »
    Scottish inheritance law varies in some important ways from English and Welsh law. Always check that any advice relates to the Scottish law.

    Without a will - www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/12/05115128/51285


    Thanks for that. That explains what would happen to thier estate so that is useful to know.

    I suppose my concern is more about will I be able to access things (accounts, thier home etc) to help them should they need care or access things in order to sort out their estate and arrange a funeral since my assumption is I will do all that (if their brothers and sisters are dead or unable to). where thier money and estate goes after the costs of funerals is less of a concern.

    Em
    LBM: July 09
    Mum [STRIKE]£400[/STRIKE], Overdraft [STRIKE]£700[/STRIKE], RBS CC [STRIKE]£3980[/STRIKE], A&L loan [STRIKE]£11,263[/STRIKE], Santander CC [STRIKE]£1955[/STRIKE]
    Total debt [STRIKE]-£16343[/STRIKE] £0:j:j:j:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
    Debt free by December 2011
  • empage wrote: »
    Thanks for that. That explains what would happen to thier estate so that is useful to know.

    I suppose my concern is more about will I be able to access things (accounts, thier home etc) to help them should they need care or access things in order to sort out their estate and arrange a funeral since my assumption is I will do all that (if their brothers and sisters are dead or unable to). where thier money and estate goes after the costs of funerals is less of a concern.

    Em

    Then you want to know about power of attorney. See link for Scottish info. This is for when people are living, but unable to manage their own affairs. Wills are for after a person dies.
  • annie-c
    annie-c Posts: 2,542 Forumite
    As others have said: a Power of Attorney covers the wishes of the living; a Will covers (retrospectively) the wishes of the deceased.

    If your Aunt or Uncle wish to give you Power of Attorney while they are alive, or make you an Executor of their Estate for the time after their death, then they can do this with your consent and don't have to leave you anything at all in their will: the two issues are quite separate. The only way you can find out what they want is by talking to them and this may feel helpful to them, or not, depending on their own situation and outlook on life and death.

    If they choose not to go down these routes, then any decision making responsibilities later on will fall legally to their next of kin. In practice, you can of course help the next of kin in any way you wish. For example, I am currently helping my mother deal with a late relative's estate. My mother is perfectly compos mentis and capable of dealing with her own day-to-day affairs, so a Power of Attorney would not be thinkable to us but complex legal matters upset her and so I take the load off by dealing with much of the work myself, helping to write letters, keeping records for her, and putting her on the phone or taking her to meetings so that she can give verbal permission for me to speak on her behalf to banks/government departments, etc. Although I worried about this at the outset, it seems it is quite a common thing for families to do, since the estates of people who die intestate commonly pass to elderly siblings who are likely to need this sort of help.

    So, if you want to be helpful to whoever finds themselves 'in charge' at any time then nothing legally should stop you. The only time problems may arise for you is if the next-of-kin doesn't actually want your help or has different ideas to you about what your Aunt and Uncle would have wanted because, ultimately, if you are not next of kin and can make no legitimate claim to take over that role, then there is not a lot you can do about whatever it is that you would like to be involved in.

    As regards any possible inheritance of the estate, as you have seen, there is a strict order in which an estate is distributed. As a niece/nephew you are quite a way down the list of people who would stand to become next-of-kin and there is potentially a long time to go in which you could be completely knocked off the list of potential beneficiaries, depending on who is related (by blood) to whom, and who dies first.

    Although you are not thinking about the inheritance now, and although the matters of inheritance and responsibility are not strictly linked, it is probably worth thinking through at this stage whether you are sure want to make a commitment to take over your Aunt and Uncle's affairs in a situation where you are wrapped up in the work but may have little or no claim to an inheritance. I know this sounds harsh but circumstances can change over time and the whole matter of funerals and probate and inheritance can really bring out the worst in people and make the whole thing feel like a very thankless task, no matter how strong one's sense of duty.

    After going though the probate process as my mother's helpful assistant, I am working hard to persuade my parents to take some independent advice and sort out their own affairs, including leaving behind a will and a clear paper trail. I am being very careful to find them external resources to help them (we have a very good local voluntary organisation for older adults which offers impartial advice and sign-posting) so as not to leave myself open to any claims of impropriety, but I must admit I do have a certain amount of self-interest in it. I'm not vaguely interested in knowing who will inherit what, but I never want to deal with another intestate death and all the related paperwork and stress, ever again if I can help it. It's a bl**dy nightmare and I want my own parents to spare me from it, by sorting their own affairs while they are still alive. My own will has been done and dusted for years as I wouldn't wish the administration process on anyone.
  • Fire_Fox
    Fire_Fox Posts: 26,026 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 17 March 2013 at 3:33AM
    You sound rather like me, I know I will be the one dealing with some of my older relatives affairs when the time comes, my sibling is useless when emotional. Luckily for me we are very open about death and the practicalities in our family.

    Power of Attorney does not mean you are taking over someone's affairs from the day it is drawn up, it has to be registered before it can be used. A lot of families do have an ad hoc system whereby other relatives have PIN numbers are suchlike, this leaves you open to problems because if there is a fraudulent transaction (by a stranger) or theft of the card, say, the bank can refuse to refund any losses. :(

    My parents drew up PoA fifteen years ago when around 50 - we use this for one account because they travel extensively not because they need any help whatsoever. One of my aunts is likely about to be diagnosed with dementia and is to draw up a will and PoA, but this will not be registered and used by my cousin until required. I will soon be doing one myself and expect to be healthy for decades. As I understand it if you wait too long to draw these up and the person is no longer capable of giving informed consent you have to apply to the Court of Protection to force the matter, which is likely stressful and time consuming.

    The Power of Attorney dies with the person, it does not give you the right to continue to access their funds after their death, say paying bills. After this you need to be next of kin/ executor/ administrator to continue to act on behalf of the deceased. I presume you can help by mailing out copies of the death certificate and notifying people of the death but nothing financial.

    Maybe you could get your own affairs sorted and then raise the PoA as a talking point with your older relatives, or when Will Aid Month comes up use that as the talking point since most people would be happier to give to charity than line a solicitor's pocket! I think it is better your aunt and uncle nominate who they want to be executor, it's surprising how people can get uppity or argumentative about who should be responsible if the wishes are not clearly laid out, when actually it's likely a PITA/ thankless task to do.
    Declutterbug-in-progress.⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️
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